Great Western Coffee Shop

From the FGW website front page :


See link below for more details.
http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=80

To do with introduction of SDO.

At short platforms FGW have put up posters saying that you now must store bikes in front power cars and how to store them in the front power cars. There is also a blue circular sign where you must load your bicycles. If you are alighting at a short platform you must inform the TM where you board and put your bicycle in the front power car.

As a cyclist with an unscheduled 15 minutes to spend on Bristol Temple Meads station, I was drawn to actually read FGW's poster regarding cycles on trains. What a joy it is.

(http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh135/bastouni/choochoo/DSCF00670.jpg)

Particularly amusing is paragraph 3 which I quote exactly for you
"If you are travelling to or from any station not shown in the above list, please load your cycle in Coach A as normal."

Now the above list is a list of short platform stations.
So any station not shown is a long platform station.
So if I go from, say, BTM(long platform) to anywhere I should put the bike in coach A??? ???

How can they make something so simple into something so complicated, and then get it wrong?
Can you imagine being a foreign visitor, struggling with english as a second language, trying to understand this gibberish?

To top it all they then have the cheek to blame cyclists for delays in loading bikes onto trains!

If you find it that difficult to fathom out either leave bike at home, or invest in a fold up one and then you can take it in the coach with you

Or ask a member of staff if you are unsure, which it does recomend!

Not always possible

I used to cycle paddington to uxbridge and back - 14 miles each way

You need a proper bike for that

I know there would be less space, but why not just have:

"load your bike into the front power car."

Ah simple!

The rear one could be used for people travelling to long platforms!

Or simply stop the TGS and the rear PC at every platform; inevitable very difficult!

Thats whats happening from March onwards, have you seen the new stop boards at the ends of the platforms? "HST stop 2+7" and one a bit further on saying "HST stop 2+8".

Can't say I have although it cant be much different to the old HST stop boards, particularly in Cornwall!